23/03/2012
NEWS STORY
Ahead of today's second session, the air temperature is 30 degrees C while the track temperature is 45 degrees. Humidity is 61 percent.
Lewis Hamilton topped the timesheets earlier, ahead of Vettel, Rosberg, Schumacher, Grosjean and Webber. Jenson Button was sidelined for much of the latter stages of the session with an oil leak, though the Woking team was eager to play this down.
Tyre options this weekend are hard and medium though we saw little of the softer rubber this morning. On the other hand, courtesy of the dusty track surface we saw plenty of drivers running wide.
Noticeably, both Mercedes looked strong, completing a good number of laps, while the Ferrari did its usual and used the session for testing purposes not fast times. Lotus also looked strong, both drivers making it into the top seven and lapping consistently.
Williams reserve driver Valtteri Bottas was in Bruno Senna's car this morning, as he will be on another fourteen occasions this season.
While rain was expected this afternoon, the radar shows that there are showers out there but are decreasing in size and also look set to miss the circuit. The threat of rain meant that this morning's was a particularly busy session, with drivers concentrating on longer runs.
The lights go green and Glock leads Karthikeyan and Pic on to the track to get proceedings underway.
Not convinced that the rain will stay away, more and more drivers pour on to the track, Alonso, Schumacher and Webber among them.
Glock posts the first time of the afternoon, the German crossing the line at 1:46.413. Moments later, Grosjean takes the top spot with a 43.554, only to be demoted by Webber's 41.144. Elsewhere, all manner of problems for de la Rosa, after a major lock-up he almost collects Perez as he leaves the pits.
Schumacher and then Vergne go quickest as the times tumble, Rosberg and Ricciardo almost instantly replacing them at the head of the table.
A 39.867 sees Schumacher retake the top spot as Button heads down the pitlane. Elsewhere, di Resta goes cross-country at Turn 15, the replay showing him to have a puncture to his right-front tyre.
Button goes fourth with a 40.317, ahead of Vergne, Rosberg and Webber as mechanics work on a problem on Vettel's car.
Hamilton posts 39.611 to go quickest as teammate flat-spots his tyres with a major lock-up. In the Force India garage the mechanics work on di Resta's car, the Scot having also suffered a problem with one of his brakes catching fire.
Schumacher takes to the grass at Turn 4, and runs wide again at Turn 6, the German very much on the limit. Mike Gascoyne tweets that his drivers are reporting a lot less grip than this morning.
Hamilton consolidates his top spot with a 38.921 as Button eases comfortably into second with a 39.754 only to be demoted when Alonso's 39.679 splits the Woking duo.
Just to convince the Woking boys that they won't be having it all their own way this weekend, on his first flying lap, Vettel bangs in a 39.624 to go second.
No sooner has Alonso goes second (39.391) than he is displaced by Vergne (39.297) and then Ricciardo, who displaces Hamilton also, the Australian crossing the line at 38.853. Both Toro Rosso drivers on mediums.
Webber is the first of the big guns to switch to the softer (medium) rubber, though it should be said that both Lotus drivers are also on this compound. Replay shows Webber and Kovalainen almost colliding as the Finn, on a flying lap, overtakes the Red Bull driver.
Currently eleventh (40.636), Webber posts a PB in S1 and another in S2. At the line the Red Bull driver posts 39.133 to go third. Elsewhere, Hamilton running wide in Turn 4.
Pirelli wants to know if it is easy to distinguish the silver (hard) and white (medium) tyres. In a word, no!
In the Sauber garage the rear end of Kobayashi's car is in pieces, the Japanese driver currently fifteenth (41.607), 2.754s off the pace. Mechanics in the Force India garage, working on di Resta's car, are equally busy.
Alonso (mediums) goes quickest in S2, finally crossing the line at 38.891 to go second. Massa and Vettel are also on the option rubber, the German making a mistake on his out lap on the softer rubber.
As Vettel fails to improve, Hamilton, still on the harder rubber, goes quickest in S2. Meanwhile, Raikkonen (medium) goes quickest in S1. Hamilton goes quickest with a 38.816, the McLaren setting a phenomenal pace on the harder rubber. Elsewhere, Vettel complains of poor balance; "the car's all over the place," he moans.
Pirelli's Mario Isola wonders whether the high lap times are due to a slower track or drivers running with high fuel loads.
Another improvement from Hamilton who ups the ante with a 38.617. Meanwhile, also on hards, Button goes quickest in S2, crossing the line at 38.858 to go third.
With 40:15 on the clock, it's: Hamilton, Ricciardo, Button, Alonso, Webber, Vergne, Grosjean, Vettel, Maldonado and Hulkenberg.
Finally back on track, di Resta goes eleventh (39.625) having posted PBs in all three sectors. At which point the timing screens go awry.
Di Resta loses it at Turn 6, clouts the kerb and is very lucky not to clout the barriers. Another big moment for the Scot. Meanwhile, Button improves to second with a 38.674.
Now on the medium rubber, Schumacher goes straight to the tops of the sheets, the German posting a 38.533. Shortly after, teammate Rosberg posts 38.696 to go fourth.
Button is now on the softer rubber, and while he fails to improve in S1 he is quickest in S2. At the line the Melbourne winner posts 38.535 which is only good enough for second.
Hamilton and Massa are also on the medium rubber now, the 2008 champ improving to first with a 38.513, the Englishman only going quickest in S2. The Top 4, Hamilton, Schumacher, Button and Rosberg, are covered by just 0.183s.
Massa, having failed to improve his time on the mediums, returns to the Ferrari garage, as Alonso heads off down the pitlane.
Another improvement from Hamilton (38.172), opens a 0.361s gap to (second quickest) Schumacher.
With 20;00 on the clock, most drivers switch to high fuel runs on the softer rubber, looking ahead to the opening phase of Sunday's race.
Kobayashi, who has only completed 8 laps due to a gearbox problem, posts 40.779 to go seventeenth.
Needing to play catch-up, having lost almost an hour, as his rivals concentrate on long runs on high fuel, Kobayashi is the only driver actually improving his times sector by sector.
Hamilton, still getting used to the handling of the car on full fuel, runs wide a couple of times. Better now than on Sunday.
The marbles are more noticeable here than they were in Melbourne.
As Hamilton is told that he needs to find time in S2, the McLaren driver runs wide again.
While Vettel switches back to the harder rubber, Glock sheds a piece of carbonfibre. A big lock-up for Schumacher as he heads into the final corner.
As Karthikeyan spins, the HRT driver appearing to be daydreaming, Pirelli confirms that there is around 0.5s between the two tyre compounds.
The session ends with Hamilton quickest ahead of Schumacher, Button, Rosberg, Ricciardo, Alonso, Webber, Vergne, Grosjean and Vettel.
Maldonado is eleventh, ahead of Hulkenberg, di Resta, Kobayashi, Raikkonen, Massa, Senna, Perez, Petrov, Glock, Kovalainen, Pic, Karthikeyan and de la Rosa.
Check out our Friday gallery, here.